As the title says, a lot of the time when I'm changing gear, generally the lower ones, I seem to hear and feel a little clunk noise...sometimes I can stop this, especially when going achingly slow on lifting the clutch but it can still happen, enough to make me wonder - is this normal for a focus? It's a 2012 tdci titanium econetic...

Hey jeebowhite,
Thanks for the reply firstly.
Well having done my usual research first on what it might be I did wonder if this was the case but it doesn't seem to be, for starters it doesn't only happen when I've just started the engine up, which is what I believe the abs test does, is this right?

Sounds fairly normal to me. You should hear/feel my mum's 206 tdci when you change gear.

It will vary depending on how cold the clutch is, how well you match the revs between gears and how hard you hit the bite point of the clutch.

I hope I never feel your mums Peugeot when I change gear... I dont think my insurance company would like me very much

It could be clutch bump (thrust bearing perhaps) but I still wouldn't discount the bump being the ABS, the test typically occurs at the point of startup, however, if there is a duff reading, when you drop to 0 it may request a second self test (or third or fourth... so on)

Cheers for the replies again. Right yeah see I was wondering if it's just a case of me having to get used to the sound of things, hence the title, having not had a diesel before etc..
Just seems like you can hear a lot of clanking and clunking around when choosing the gears and using the clutch as well as this particular clunk I'm chatting about.. but could easily be me gone a bit mental over fussing with my new baby, lol.
In answer to the last question though, centrally I think it comes from... Cheers G

Cheers jimrex, that's exactly what I've been thinking too, even been altering the way I change gears to see if it makes any difference, sometimes I think it does but then I'll hear something again, hence I think I'm just being overly sensitive about it all! Doesn't seem to affect the performance I don't think..

Took the Focus into my dealer because when driving my wife to work I heard more distinct clunks from the gears particularly on changing up from 2nd to 3rd.

The Focus had 3,875 on the clock and has been exhibiting this behaviour since it had about 1,000 on the clock. Simon from the Service Department kindly volunteered to come out and drive round the nearby industrial park with me.

Initially no clunks – indeed I was a bit jerky making the first change from 1st to 2nd but there was no clunk at all – the gears performed perfectly. Simon said there was absolutely no trouble with my driving style and he could tell I was an experienced driver.

Then we had a clunk. Simon called it a slight “clonking”. I call it "a distinct clunk"! He said I have to remember that with a 6-speed gearbox there have to be tolerances and the slight clonking we heard was, as far as he was concerned, completely normal and acceptable … he said, “to be honest, I have heard far worse" ... I have to say I tend to become a little nervous when people profess to being honest!!

I said to him that I had never experienced this clunking before (not with Audis, BMW's, Daihatsus, Rovers,Citroens etc etc) and was there any way I could alter my driving style to avoid the clunks – he did not give me a straightforward answer, referred again to tolerances, and asked if I would like him to do some driving – which I agreed to.

On his first change up from 2nd to 3rd there was a very loud clunk … no, he confirmed, that was absolutely nothing to worry about. I asked him if there was any need for a check or adjustment and he said, no.

He confirmed I should relax and enjoy the car and accept that Ford gearboxes clunk.